This section provides background information related to the present disclosure which is not necessarily prior art.
An autonomous vehicle is a vehicle that is capable of sensing its environment and navigating with little or no user input. An autonomous vehicle senses its environment using sensing devices such as Radar, LIDAR, image sensors such as cameras, and the like. The autonomous vehicle system may further use information from global positioning systems (GPS) technology, navigation systems, vehicle-to-vehicle communication, vehicle-to-infrastructure technology, and/or drive-by-wire systems to navigate the vehicle.
Vehicle automation has been categorized into numerical levels ranging from Zero, corresponding to no automation with full human control, to Five, corresponding to full automation with no human control. Various automated driver-assistance systems, such as cruise control, adaptive cruise control, and parking assistance systems correspond to lower automation levels, while true “driverless” vehicles, which incorporate autonomous driving agents, correspond to higher automation levels.
An autonomous vehicle should be capable of detecting collisions with external objects surrounding the autonomous vehicle.
Accordingly, it is desirable to obtain systems and methods for detecting collisions between an autonomous vehicle and external objects. Other desirable features and characteristics of the present invention will become apparent from the subsequent detailed description and the appended claims, taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings and the foregoing technical field and background.